Biography

After cutting his musical teeth in Chicago’s beloved garage-rock combo Kingsize, Wes Hollywood decided to broaden his horizons by forming the eponymous Wes Hollywood Show in 1999. Over five years and four albums, the signature Wes Hollywood sound came into focus – a muscular mix of new wave and power pop that earned the band a legion of fans and a serious reputation, culminating with the Moonraker LP, a well-loved touchstone of the Chicago scene. But never satisfied and always looking for ways to reinvent himself, Wes formed the band tenniscourts in 2007.

Over the years, Wes has stomped on every big stage in Chicago, including The Metro, Double Door, Schuba’s, Bottom Lounge and The Hideout, to name but a few. His music has beamed from the antennae of WXRT, WLUW, WKQX (Q 101) and all of those left-of-the-dial stations that cool people listen to as well.

But now Wes has taken the best of everything he’s done, cherry-picking the best of his accompanists and ideas under his original nom de guerre Wes Hollywood. He has finally put together the perfect distillation of his delirious pop style, and the new LP Fantasy Arcade is the result.